To set the scene. Driving south from Urikaruus we come across the two collared males resting in the riverbed. We decided to move on in search of other things. About 2kms further down we come across first two youngish males walking up the river and then notice they are followed by two females. They can clearly smell and hear the two further up. We decide this is not to be missed so turn around and follow them up the river.They approach the sleepers from the top of the ridge, the smaller of the two Sidey notices his stalkers first and makes a dash down the river, but Vetsak stays sleeping. Eventually the stalkers make a run at him. He bolts and the chase up the river begins. After a few 100ms they cross the road and go up and over the ridge out of sight.At this point Sidey turns around and walks back towards where his mate disappeared, roaring a bit. At this point the pride of 4 reappear on the ridge and start perusing Sidey now. They run down the river bed for around a km or so and eventually catch him.The following two videos were of the eventual fight.

After a while the two females caught up with them, (apologies for loss of quality but we had to change video camera due to empty batteries!)

After the aggressors decided to take a rest Sidey moved to the other side of our car to take a rest in the shade. Eventually though he decided to move on up the river. When he moved so did the others. They chased him again up over the ridge and out of sight. We could only hear noises. We really didn't know if they were going to let him live. However, since this sighting he has been seen back with Vetsak so they did let him live.A truly memorable encounter!

Last edited by AstroMatt on Tue Jan 08, 2013 9:33 am, edited 1 time in total.

So sad to hear of the passing of Piet Heymans. Rest easy Oom Piet. In my book he was a pioneer, a legend.We will cherish the time we spent with him at a photo oppurtunity in the Karoo. The stories he shared will always be remembered.Our sympathies go out to his family.

When you visit the Kgalagadi again, take a moment to look at his photo's on display.